For 13 consecutive summers, Tamarie Cooper wowed Houston audiences with an original full-scale musical comedy filled to the brim with songs and gags from some of Houston's funniest theater artists. Her original plays have been among the city's most popular summer offerings. But last year, she took a time-out from this creative output to care for her newborn daughter, Rose.

Well, she's back.

Written by Patrick Reynolds and Tamarie Cooper — with original music and lyrics by Tamarie Cooper, John Duboise, Joe Folladori, DeWitt Gravink and Patrick Reynolds — The United States of Tamarie is an unapologetic look at the absurdity of America's modern national identity. Protest culture, patriotic machismo, education, international affairs, pop culture, religion, jazz, conspiracy theories, political deadlock and nostalgia are all skewered by Tamarie's zany wit.